Chinatown all set for ‘goat year’

The Manila City government is set to welcome the Chinese New Year with colorful activities to be held in Binondo.

As part of the celebration, Manila Mayor Lito Atienza said restaurants in Chinatown will hold a two-day food festival today and tomorrow, offering popular Chinese dishes and delicacies at very affordable prices.

"We are inviting everyone to take part in the celebration on Friday to welcome the Chinese New Year. It will be a very festive event and a very enjoyable experience," Atienza said.

The mayor said the city government has been actively participating in the celebration of the Chinese New Year in the last four years. "Manila is the only city in the country with a Chinatown district. We are proud of our Chinese roots and we want to project Chinese cultural practices and traditions as an important facet of our city’s cultural life."

He said Chinatown is also one of the city’s most colorful district with an excellent tourism potential.

A motorcade of vintage cars will be held today around Chinatown as a prelude to the main celebration of welcoming the Year of the Goat on Friday.

Tomorrow’s activities include a parade as well as performances from a dance troupe and from the Jiangsu Overseas Troupe from China, headed by 8-foot-tall Wang Chiangiu, the world tallest man.

The parade will start at 4 p.m. in front of the Binondo Church (Minor Basilica of San Lorenzo Ruiz) and will go through Ongpin street to Plaza Sta. Cruz then to Dasmariñas street and Quintin Paredes street. After the parade, a cultural program will be held on Ongpin street to be capped with fireworks display. – Cecille Suerte Felipe